The Daily bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Hawaii]) 1882-1895, 1887-10-19
WEDNESDAY. OCT. 10, 1857.
THE LABOR PROBLEM.

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Hawaii, whatever may be said to
the contrary, depends upon its SUI
gar industry, and the future Of that
industry is largely dependent upon
labor. Cheap, reliable and trained
labor is essential to the prosperity
Of sugar planters. This must be
evident to any person who gives this
subject careful thought. New con-
ditions are constantly arising In the
production and distribution of sugar
throughout the world which cannot
fail TO affect the prospects Of sugar
makers on these islands. One Of
the most important events Of the
kind, so far as Hawaiian planters
are concerned, was mentioned in
your paper yesterday: l mean the
establishment Of beet sugar manu-
facture as a national industry in the
United States, under the stimulus
of public bounty, and the corela-
tive reduction of sugar duties toequal-
ize prices to consumers and reduce
the Treasury surplus.
In view of this state of facts it
becomes the duty of all to consider
what steps, If any, should be taken
to protect and encourage the sugar
planting interests, to the intent that
they may be able to hold their own
against this new competitor in the
American market. 1t is very evil
dent that should Congress adopt the
policy outlined above, and in your
issue of the 18th, that something
must be done or our sugar industry
will be seriously damaged if not
wholly ruined. Now, what can be
done? What is feasible or possible?
The Planters Labor and Supply Com
pany is now in session and might
very properly give special consider
alton to this subject. 1t is the one
question, of all others, which that
body of practical men should con-
slider.
The thought occurs to me that
the entire system of employing and
distributing labor should be chang
ed. Contract labor, when the time
expires, should be compelled to ship
again until at least the Government
advance has been repaid The pre-
sent method makes no provision
for repaying Government advances
for immigration as it should do, the
consequence being that large sums
have been expended from the pub
lie Treasury to introduce labor i'm
migrants without any permanent re-
suits.
The second thought arises in re-
gard to the tendency of shipped
hands TO flock into Honolulu when
their original contract expires, and
there adding to the criminal and
idle classes already too numerous.
This is true of Chinese and Portu-
guese. The Chinese, through their
superior organization, are able to
maintain, in whole or partial idle
ness, between 1900 and 5000 men
in this city; but the Portuguese are
fast becoming objects of public
charity. In other words many of
them prefer to eat the bread of
charity to eating the bread of in
dustry.
This is social and economic pro-
blem which the Legislature should
deal with in the coming session.
Something might be accomplished
by enforcing the vagrancy law; still
more might be accomplished by re-
fusing to issue new licenses to
Chinese. This would put a stop to
peddling, which is often made
pretext to cover smuggling, theft,
the sale of opium and intoxicants,
and it would compel large number
of trained plantation hands, now
idle loafers, either to ship anew or
leave the country. The BULLETIN
announced that about one thousand
japanese laborers are expected in
November; but these are unframed,
and cannot therefore be of equal
value to planters as the same num-
bers of men who have been accus-
toned to plantation work.